The Blue Backpack

27/09/2026

The capital of Piedmont and the genesis of the “slow food” movement, Turin (or Torino) is a fabulous city. Gorgeous and delicious.

20/09/2026

In Turin now, where the Slow Food movement started, I spent two delicious hours over three courses — vitello tonnato (thinly sliced veal draped in a creamy tuna sauce), tajarin alla Langarola (those impossibly thin Piedmontese egg noodles in a slow-cooked meat ragù), and bonet to finish (a dark, velvety chocolate and amaretti pudding) — with the friendliest staff who never once made me feel the table was needed elsewhere. This is exactly the kind of meal I want my travelers to have. Not a checkbox. A sensual memory.

19/09/2026

In Como, Italy where I spent one night. And yes, it is crowded but such a delightful town! My favorite memory will be this morning walk on the lake.
I look forward to bringing my groups here!

03/09/2026

01/09/2026

Suisse Romande (the French-Speaking region in Switzerland) offers spectacular views, unique hiking trails, excellent wines, vineyards, regional cuisine, medieval villages, art and culture and inviting pristine lakes for swimming.

31/08/2026

It took about two hours to hike up to the edge of the Creux du Van a natural rocky cirque approximately 1,400 meters wide and 150 meters deep.

23/08/2026

You’ll experience this dashing hotel if you join my Hiking and W**e Tasting tour to Switzerland in September 2027. I almost don’t want to leave the property!

17/08/2026

On the way to the airport 😀✈️🇨🇭

07/08/2026

☕ One of my favorite things about traveling is discovering how the world drinks its coffee. Same bean, endlessly different rituals — each cup a small window into a culture.
But the one thing I want to tell you about is the Café Gourmand: a mini-indulgence, a guilt-free pleasure.
A single espresso, served alongside a selection of 3 to 5 miniature desserts. A little of everything — a tiny tart, a bite of mousse, a miniature macaron, a sliver of something chocolate. It arrived on Parisian menus in the mid-1980s and has since become a fixture in France and the French-speaking region of Switzerland.
Why does it work so beautifully?
● My personal reason: no more FOMO with the dessert menu.
● The sweetness of the desserts lets you sip the espresso without sugar — a delicious balance of bitter and sweet.
● It saves time — coffee and dessert arrive together in one elegant moment.

Café Gourmand was born out of a cultural shift: the slow disappearance of the long French lunch which was partly funded by the Titres de Restaurants or meal vouchers. Gone are the days of multi-course midday meals with drinks, appetizers, a main dish, dessert, coffee, and digestif. Shorter lunch breaks, rising food prices, the ability to use the meal vouchers at the supermarket, digital habits, productivity culture — and more recently, the rise of remote work since COVID-19 — all chipped away at that ritual.


Have you tried one? Would you order it? 👇